Sentence appeals granted in 3 Alberta multiple murder cases
Four convicted multiple murderers in Alberta will be offered the chance to plead their cases to a parole board much earlier after series of appeal decisions on Friday.
Derek Saretzky, Edward Downey, Joshua Frank and Jason Klaus all had their sentence appeals granted by the Alberta Court of Appeal in Calgary.
Frank and Klaus were each convicted of three counts of first-degree murder after the bodies of Klaus's father and sister were discovered in their burnt-out farmhouse near Red Deer, Alta., in 2013. His mother's body was never found.
They were ordered to serve 50 years before applying for release.
Downey killed Sara Baillie and her five-year-old daughter, Taliyah Marsman, in Calgary in 2016. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 50 years.
Saretzky was convicted on three counts of first-degree murder in the 2015 deaths of Terry Blanchette, his two-year-old daughter, Hailey Dunbar-Blanchette; and neighbour Hanne Meketech in Blairmore, Alta. He was given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 75 years.
The men all appealed their sentences based on the case involving another multiple murderer in Canada's top court.
The decision centred on Alexandre Bissonnette, the gunman who killed six worshippers at a mosque in Quebec City in 2017 and was initially sentenced to life in prison with no parole for 40 years.
In that case, the Supreme Court of Canada decided life sentences with no chance of parole were considered "cruel and unusual punishment" and therefore "unconstitutional."
As a result, Bissonette's sentence was changed to allow him to be eligible for parole in 25 years.
That means all of the Alberta men will be allowed to apply for parole in the same period of time.
LOOKING TO REHABILITATION
Jeff Rybak, an Alberta-based parole lawyer, said the "outcome is inevitable" for other convicted killers who apply for sentencing changes based on the same circumstances.
"Realistically thinking, it's a couple dozen cases in Canada where this applies," he said during an interview with CTV News.
"Everybody who is convicted of first-degree murder is on a life sentence. Period. What we're talking about here is parole ineligibility."
However, just because these men are allowed the chance to apply for parole at 25 years, it doesn't mean they will be released, Rybak said.
"I would be shocked if there were ever a mass murderer convicted of more than one count of first degree murder who ever got out on the nose at 25 years or anywhere close to it."
He adds all convicted murderers will be in the federal prison system for a very long time, which allows them to access a multitude of rehabilitative programs and be examined by a large number of experts.
"Very gradually progressing to some form of release in the future."
Rybak says it is that possibility that the justice system wanted to preserve with its decision in the Bissonnette case.
"If we create laws that refute that possibility and say, 'it is impossible for some people to be redeemed," what is that saying about ourselves as a society?"
(With files from The Canadian Press)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Chants of 'shame on you' greet guests arriving for the annual White House correspondents' dinner
An election-year roast of U.S. President Joe Biden before journalists, celebrities and politicians at the annual White House correspondents' dinner Saturday.
What is a 'halal mortgage'? Does it make housing more accessible?
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized after return to New York from upstate prison
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
'We are declaring our readiness': No decision made yet as Poland declares it's ready to host nuclear weapons
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
Central Alberta queer groups react to request from Red Deer-South to reinstate Jennifer Johnson to UCP caucus
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.